SanfangQixiang (Three Lanes and Seven Alleys) received 1.25 million visitors during Spring Festival. [Photo/Fuzhou Daily]

According to a sample survey by the local tourism bureau, an increasing number of tourists took independent tours rather than escorted group tours. About 46.7 percent of the short-distance tours were made by self-driving, while most travelers took high-speed CRH trains for long-distance tours.

The Chinese Lunar New Year is traditionally a time for family gatherings in China. In recent years, family travel has become increasingly common and has created a tourism boom across the country.

China earned 5.4 trillion yuan from tourism in 2017, an increase of 15.1 percent. The country plans to raise tourism revenue to 7 trillion yuan by 2020 in a bid to develop it into a major driver of economic transformation and upgrading.

This year's Lunar New Year holiday runs from Feb 15 to Feb 21.